


Public Responsibility

by Agogobell28



Category: Orphan Black (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Doctor!Delphine, F/F, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-12
Updated: 2017-06-12
Packaged: 2018-11-13 11:39:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,947
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11184339
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Agogobell28/pseuds/Agogobell28
Summary: Beth and Art have a homicide investigation to follow leads on, and this takes them to the hospital. One of the doctors there catches Beth's eye, and they hit it off.





	Public Responsibility

**Author's Note:**

  * For [blanchtt](https://archiveofourown.org/users/blanchtt/gifts).



“Can I see him or not?” asks Beth.

At first the person at the desk refuses, but when Beth explains that the patient in room 103 of this wing of the hospital is a suspect in an ongoing homicide investigation, she and Art are allowed to pass.

They approach the door of the room, which is heavy and wooden and has no window to look in through, so they have no warning when it is opened by a blonde woman in a lab coat. She appears surprised momentarily at seeing them there, but soon recovers her composure. “Who are you?” she asks warily, an accent (French?) noticeable.

“Oh, um, I’m Detective Elizabeth Childs and this is Detective Arthur Bell,” says Beth quickly. “We’d like to ask Mark Henderson a few questions relating to an ongoing police investigation.”

The woman’s brow furrows slightly. “Mr. Henderson is currently recovering from hepatitis. I’m the doctor treating him.” Sure enough, when Beth looks at the woman’s nametag, it reads “D. CORMIER, M.D.”

“It’s urgent,” says Art beside her. “We suspect he may have valuable information that we need.” _That’s a diplomatic way to put it,_ thinks Beth.

Dr. Cormier hesitates for a moment, then stand aside to let them into the room. “All right,” she says, acquiescing. “You can talk to him. But he’s in a very fragile state. Both of you together might not be the best thing for him.”

Beth and Art exchange a glance, and Beth tells him, “You can question him. I’ll wait outside until you’re done.” Art nods, and Beth leaves the room along with Doctor Cormier.

Immediately after they have shut the door to leave Art to interrogate the man, Dr. Cormier turns to Beth and asks in a lowered voice, “So why do you two want to talk to him?”

Beth is careful. “He happens to be a person of interest in a homicide investigation.” There are two chairs just outside the room, and Beth seats herself in one to wait for Art to get done.

Dr. Cormier walks off down the hallway to what appears to be a supply room, enters it, and comes out a few moments later. She comes back down the hallway, pauses in front of Beth, then decides to sit in the chair beside her. “He’s in quite a weakened state,” she says to Beth, “and he has been for some time.” She leans slightly towards Beth and continues, “I doubt that he would be able to commit a homicide in his condition.”

“Maybe not, but we’ve been told this is a reliable lead,” says Beth. She takes a better look at the doctor, and is met with the sight of strikingly soft brown eyes, gorgeous blond curls tied back in a little bun, and an expression of curiosity. There is silence for a moment as Beth processes what she is seeing, and then Dr. Cormier asks, “How long do murder investigations usually take to finish?”

Beth says, “Anywhere from a few days to a few months. To tell you the truth, I still haven’t gotten a sense of how long things usually take. It _could_ go on for a pretty long time.”

“I suppose... for your sake, I hope you get the answers you need, because there’s a possibility that your - your person of interest in there might die in the next few months or so,” says the doctor, lowering her voice still more.

Beth gives a short half-laugh. “We’ve... had that happen a couple times.”

“Really?” replies Dr. Cormier lightly, but Beth can detect a thread of curiosity in her voice, and she smiles in response to this. “Yeah, surprisingly enough.”

The doctor blinks a few times suddenly and swallows. Did she just stifle a yawn? It’s only four-thirty in the afternoon. “If you don’t mind me asking, when did you start work today? It - I - you just look tired, y’know,” says Beth.

Dr. Cormier half-smiles, this time looking even more tired. “Six-thirty.”

Beth’s eyes widen involuntarily, and she can think of nothing to reply with except, “Damn.”

“It’s all in the line of work,” comes the response from Dr. Cormier. “Police have to get up early too, no?”

“Yeah... from time to time. I like having the early morning to myself, though.”

Dr. Cormier nods and says, “I do too.” She falls silent for a bit, and it feels to Beth like an awkward one, as if the other woman wants to say something, but isn’t sure whether it’ll be taken well. Gazing down at her lap, she bites her lip.

Beth decides to break the tension between them by saying, “I like going for runs super-early, or going to the gym. It’s so quiet then, you know?”

“That’s true,” says Dr. Cormier, slightly more at ease (or so it seems to Beth). “One’s mind is clearer, there are fewer distractions...” She pauses, and turns to Beth again with an almost-embarrassed expression. “Unfortunately, I hardly ever exercise.”

“And you know how that’s going to affect you,” Beth returns quickly, “because you’re a doctor.”

Dr. Cormier smiles ruefully. “Of course. My health is probably going to end up in worse condition than most of my patients, to be honest. Wine and cigarettes aren’t the best things to put into your body.”

Beth chuckles; now that she thinks about it, the sheer quantity of coffee she consumes can’t be good for her system either. But the remark about wine and cigarettes has set something off in her mind. She puts two and two together: that, plus the accent, plus the name, mean that the good doctor is likely from France. Not Québec, god no - only an actual French person could be that stereotypical.

_This means I could practise on her,_ thinks Beth - and then immediately mentally reprimands herself. _No! What the heck were you thinking, Childs? You haven’t spoken it since university. And besides, you’re making assumptions again._ In any case, though, she could check.

“Are you... French?” Beth asks, _like the total dork you are,_ she thinks.

Thankfully, Dr. Cormier doesn’t turn patronising or offended. Maybe she’s too tired for that. “Yes,” she replies. Beth wants to say, “I thought as much”, but restrains herself.

“I’m surprised it took you that long to figure out, considering you’re a detective,” continues the doctor. It takes her a moment, but Beth realises that Dr. Cormier is teasing her.

“We can’t all be Sherlock Holmes,” she says. Then again, though, she _has_ been a little distracted by that luscious, curly hair.

“Of course not,” Dr. Cormier replies. “I doubt any incarnation of Sherlock Holmes has ever been as cute as you are.”

Beth feels a jump in her stomach. _Did she really just say that?_ It seems so, because Dr. Cormier has turned away from her and is staring pointedly at the door across the hallway. _I might as well take it in stride, then._

“Maybe, although I do think the Jonny Lee Miller version could contest that,” she replies, with a half-smile.

Dr. Cormier frowns slightly for a moment, then turns back to face Beth and asks, “That’s... the American TV version, right? _Elementary?_ ”

“Yeah,” Beth says. “It’s really good, actually.”

“Hmm,” says the doctor, smiling. “I’ll file that away for future knowledge. Regardless of that, though, you’re at least an intelligent person. It seems like so many cops don’t really have that.”

“When they do have it, they don’t always display it,” says Beth. “And my boss wouldn’t always agree with you.”

“But he or she is a cop too, no? There’s a biased perspective there; your boss is on the inside.”

“Are you saying you’re an unbiased judge of character?”

“No, but I’m fundamentally a scientist. One _can_ account for one’s own biases.” Dr. Cormier is watching Beth with a satisfied look on her face, her deep brown eyes alight.

_Wait a second,_ thinks Beth suddenly. _Has she been flirting with me? That’s why it felt so weird - I’ve never been hit on by a woman before._ But it doesn’t feel at all unpleasant. In fact, she muses, coming from such a fascinatingly attractive and smart woman as this, she thinks she rather likes it. But Beth knows she is too much of a dork to try to flirt back.

“I guess that’s a good point,” Beth finally replies after a couple moments spent processing. “Maybe I’m biased as well.”

“You’re a cop,” says Dr. Cormier. “You shouldn’t be biased. The law is meant to be equally applied, I would think.”

“Not on the job, no. Obviously that’s illegal. But everyone has personal preferences,” responds Beth. _And I might’ve just discovered a personal preference today._

“Of course. But when one has a public responsibility, as you or I do, one has to... give them up, temporarily,” says Dr. Cormier.

“Otherwise, you get sued,” Beth says, and there is a silence as she realises she might have said that a bit too bluntly, but it’s too real for both of them - and they start laughing at the same time.

Dr. Cormier’s grin is quickly hidden as she bites her lip, trying to hold herself back. “I guess so,” she says, and Beth witnesses how _adorable_ this woman’s laugh is. _It’s like she doesn’t do it often enough._

“I mean, if we fuck up, we’re out,” says Beth. The undercurrent of harsh reality is brought to the front of her mind, though, and she stops giggling. It looks like Dr. Cormier has realised this, too, and Beth says, “I can’t think about this right now.”

At that moment, the door next to Beth opens, and Art walks out. Beth notices, gets up, and says to him, “What’d you get?”

“Not much,” he says in a lowered voice. “He’s not that talkative, and it doesn’t look like he’s much of a suspect. He barely knows anything.”

Beth frowns. “Guess our source wasn’t as reliable as we thought,” she says in an equally lowered voice.

“Come on, let’s get back to the station,” Art says. He looks over Beth’s shoulder and says to the doctor, “Thanks for letting us question him.” Beth turns around and sees Dr. Cormier has stood up, and is watching them with a neutral expression.

“Oh, it’s nothing,” she says, and Beth and Art turn to leave. “Oh - wait,” she continues, and Beth glances back again, hoping this is what she thinks it is. “Can I talk to you for a minute?” Dr. Cormier locks eyes with Beth.

“Sure,” Beth replies swiftly. “Art, just... I’ll be out in a little bit.”

Art raises his eyebrows slightly, pausing, then says, “Okay,” and turns to leave again.

 

* * *

 

Beth opens the passenger-side door and slides into the right front seat of the sedan. She’s attempting to keep her expression neutral, but she’s sure something is probably apparent to her perceptive partner.

Sure enough, as he fires up the ignition and shifts into gear, Art asks, “What _was_ it that you two were talking about?”

“Just...” Beth exhales sharply. “Stuff. It wasn’t much.” She physically cannot help but smile for a moment; her insides are too wound-up and giddy for her to hold it back.

Art looks doubtful as they finish backing out of the parking space, but he says, “Right,” and goes silent. He maneuvers the car out of the tightly packed parking lot, and Beth feels more contented than she has been in a very long time. She now has a new contact in her phone - Delphine Cormier - and an offer for a coffee date, for “sometime soon”. It seems legit, but she has a hard time believing her luck at meeting such a gorgeous, smart, fascinating woman.

**Author's Note:**

> After I prompted chiot_et_exploratrice's Beth/Delphine fic (What a Lovely Way to Burn), I decided I might as well write my own too. It's such a cool pairing, there HAS to be content for it!


End file.
